Last year, fashion student Taj Patterson, 22, said he was headed home after a night of partying and drinking around 4 a.m. on Dec. 1 when a group of conservative Orthodox men attacked him while yelling anti-gay slurs. Patterson said he was kicked in the face while a man yelled, "stay down, faggot, stay the fuck down."

At least two of the suspects fled America to Israel soon after the attack, but authorities have them in custody. NY Daily News reports that more arrests may be made in the not too distant future.

Patterson, a student at the New York City College of Technology, admitted he couldn’t remember much from the incident. He suffered a broken eye socket, a torn retina, blood clotting and cuts and bruises to his knee. He also reportedly had surgery to reattach his retina.

"A group with some sort of uniform jacket with a logo may have been involved," NYPD Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told the newspaper before adding that police have not concluded if the men were members of the Williamsburg Shomrim, a Jewish neighborhood watch group that looks over the area where Patterson was attacked.

The men are expected to be arraigned later Wednesday, a source told the Daily News.

Comments

Jon Will, 2014-04-24 23:33:47

As a gay Jew, I’m disgusted that any members of a group with such a long history of oppression can show such hatred and intolerance toward another group. Although these men don’t represent a majority of Jews, it is still very disturbing. It is a bit surprising to hear about Hasidic men expressing their hatred so violently. They usually find subtler ways to express their bigotry.